The Junk Drawer

Emperor Qin's Mighty Army by fleur_de_lis

In 1974 some Chinese farmers digging for a well made an astonishing discovery--the vast underground tomb of the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang (259 BC--210 BC).. Qin became a king at the age of 13 and the first emperor of China at the age of 38. He is probably best known for linking defensive works on his northern borders together to form part of the Great Wall of China. Emperor Qin began construction on his vast mausoleum shortly after he became king. It is believed 700.000 workers and craftsmen labored 36 years to complete it The tomb consists of three huge underground pits filled with over 7000 soldiers, chariots, and horses. All of these figures are made from terra cotta (fired clay), all are life size, and all of the warriors faces have individual features. To date only a small portion of this amazing archeological discovery has been excavated--enough to show us the tremendous size of Qin's undertaking to preserve his power in the afterlife. The tomb containing the emperor...

Just in time for lunch.... by fleur_de_lis

A very quick post to whet your appetite! Thought you might enjoy these tempting little creations! Don't some of them remind you of Mr. Potato Head?

Gargoyle, gargle, La Gargouille.... by fleur_de_lis

Notre Dame Cathedral gargoyles Gargoyles, those scary stone monsters perched up high on the beautiful Gothic cathedrals were more practical than you might think! They actually served a twofold purpose in medieval times--as waterspouts to drain water off the massive roofs of the churches and as guardians to protect all within from evil spirits. The word gargoyle shares a common root word with gargle strangely enough. They both come from the French word 'gargouille' which means throat. Legend has it that a terrible dragon named La Gargouille lived in a cave near the river Seine. He had a long, snakelike neck, a slender snout, and membranous wings. La Gargouille wreaked havoc with his fiery breath, devouring men and burning ships in the river. Each year the citizens of Rouen would appease the dragon with a sacrifice--usually a criminal. Around the year 600 St. Romanus promised to save the village if it's citizens agreed to be baptized and to build a church. Romanus subdued the...

My New Car! by fleur_de_lis

I want this car! I would look so cute ..... http://www.transbuddha.com/mediaHolder.php?id=1726 Check out this site for a wacky video! Maybe I'll grow a pair of jeans and a t-shirt to wear when I'm driving around....doodly doodly dooo..... This one has also captured my fancy--I like condiments! Empty out those glove compartments, back seats, and refrigerator doors, grab a glue gun, and get to it! I KNEW there was a use for all those extra packets of catsup and taco sauce! Like to recycle? Well, here ya go! For those of you who want a classy number.... My husband's old blue pickup is looking mighty tempting! Hmmmm....!!!

Update 9--Life in Iraq by fleur_de_lis

My daughter has been in Iraq for a couple of months now, and their lives are gradually taking on some sort of routine. She is stationned on a base in southern Iraq and will probably be there until next June at least --maybe later. We have begun to establish our communication lines, and so I thought I would share a little of what our experiences with a deployed soldier are. Communication: In some ways, this is very hard for me to write about. We chat online, we talk on the phone a couple of times a week, we have a webcam set up, cards and packages are constantly on the move, but everything is on the surface. She won't talk about work, she won't talk about herself much, she won't communicate anything that goes too deeply, and in the few times she has, it has not been good for any of us--so we keep it on the surface. This section of an email may explain why. She writes: "I haven't been sleeping well the last couple of nights, I don't know what the problem is. Hopefully...

Bosch--Chilling and Monstrous Messages by fleur_de_lis

I have a couple of posts to do that are 'seasonal' that I think you will find interesting. The first is a post on Hieronymus Bosch , a Dutch artist of the late Middle Ages, early Renaissance time period. He lived at a time when the old medieval order imposed by the church was cracking under the pressure of religious reform amongst other things. This age was marked by violence and pessimism, and the future seemed dim with visions of demons, darkness, and hell. Life was extremely tough with a small amount of rich, often corrupt people controlling the rest of the population most of whom lived in extreme poverty. Artists at this time usually worked for the church creating visual images to teach the people the difference between good and evil. These paintings were instructive, entertaining and filled with details--often containing symbols or messages that could be 'read' like a book. In these paintings, heaven was a fantastic, wonderful place while Hell was horrible, filled...

Guernica by fleur_de_lis

Guernica--Pablo Picasso Left Side Right Side Paintings that tell stories or show the artist's deepest feelings are always some of the most interesting to look at and experience. Picasso's Guernica is certainly one of those, and here is the background story on it: On April 27th, 1937, Adolph Hitler sent 24 of his bombers to a little Basque village in northern Spain called Guernica for bombing practice--all with the consent and knowledge of the Spanish dictator Franco. For over 3 hours the tiny village was pounded with high explosives and incendiary bombs. It is said that 1600 civilians were killed or wounded and that the small town burned for 3 days. By May 1st, news of the massacre had reached Paris, where more than a million protesters flooded the streets to voice their outrage. Picasso, who was living in Paris at the time, immediately threw his creative genius into a huge mural--modern art's most powerful antiwar statement. The painting itself is gigantic--standing 11 feet...

Mystery Artist Revealed by fleur_de_lis

The mystery artist that I have been posting about is Pablo Picasso . Many of you have figured that out by now and I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the many different styles he worked with. My last two posts showed you some of the stages of Cubism--an immensely important style developed by Picasso and Braques--that gave artists new ways to observe and record the world around them.I am posting one final picture today that is an example of a style of Cubism known as simultaneity of vision. Yes, that is quite a mouthful, but it is a wonderfully unique way of observing that Picasso and his friends developed. Notice in this example how Picasso combined multiple viewpoints into one painting. This is simultaneity of vision. You can see front and side views of the eyes, nose and face all at the same time. Picasso did not want to be limited to just what he saw in front of him, he knew his face looked different from different angles so why not include these views as well? There is no way I can do...